Playing Halaal Cricket in Pakistan
Published October 30, 2006
Pakistanis love watching song-and-dance films, but are tormented by the guilt of having to rely on the great rival India and its bustling Bollywood to sustain their DVD pleasures. Pakistanis find politics entertaining, but the alternate regimes of corrupt politicians and big-mouthed army generals tend to leave them depressed and exhausted.
But there still is left one driving passion that all Pakistanis are proud of without being weighed down by any baggage.
It is cricket.
Pakistan Cricket Team Offering Prayers
From London to Lahore, from Lamb Chops to Lamb Kebabs, from Gentlemen to Pathans, it has been a long and consequential journey for this quintessentially English county game. Inherited from the British masters, nurtured in and adapted to the hot dusty grounds of their colonies, cricket in Pakistan has come to acquire a unique Pakistani distinctiveness.
In Pakistan, Cricketers and Dictators are Always on the Edge
In contrast to the kingdom of its origin, cricket has undergone a complete osmosis with its adopted country: it has seeped out as much to Pakistan as it has soaked in from the nation. The relationship has interfused to an extent that now cricket almost perfectly mirrors the turbulence of this republic.
Just like the Pakistani establishment, its cricketers too have a dangerous tendency to step into the line of fire. They are always daring, always adventurous, and sometimes outright foolish.
In October 2006, when the Pakistani players descended on India for the ICC Champions Trophy Cricket Tournament and were still in a tourist mode enjoying the Rajasthani cuisine and palaces, a scandal broke out and shamed the team. Two players were called back, following the medical results of testing positive for a banned steroid.
One of the disgraced players was Mr. Shoaib Akhtar.
If the charges are indeed true, and Mr. Akthar has to be given a mandatory banishment of two years, it will be highly unlikely for him to crawl back onto the field. At 31, he is too old, and the exile will be a sad end to his blazing career.
Mr. Akhtar, an excellent cricketer by all accounts, can blame no one except himself for landing in this soup. In fact, he has been constantly trailed by a clouded reputation. There have been unaccounted reports of sex romps in foreign tours, of smoking cannabis on hotel lawns, and dancing in discos — harmless diversions, but apparently not in accordance with Pakistani codes of conduct. Besides, Mr. Akhtar is said to have a massive chunk of ego bundled within him that makes it difficult for co-players.
Mayank Austen Soofi owns a private library and four blogs: The Delhi Walla, Pakistan Paindabad, Ruined By Reading, and Mayank Austen Soofi Photos. Contact: mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com
- Playing Halaal Cricket in Pakistan
- Published: October 30, 2006
- Type: Opinion
- Section: Politics
- Filed Under: Politics: War and Terrorism, Politics: U.S., Politics: International, Sports: Other
- Writer: Mayank Austen Soofi
- Mayank Austen Soofi's BC Writer page
- Mayank Austen Soofi's personal site
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Comments on this articleComments
Good on you Mayank ... he said through sleepy eyes, having just watched (until 3am or thereabouts) the West Indies demolish South Africa by six wickets in the day-night semi-final of the ICC Champions Trophy in Jaipur last night.
Pretty exciting stuff, as they now go on to meet Australia in the final, but it would have been nice to have seen a better showing from the sub-continent big three, especially Pakistan.
To my mind, Shoaib Akhtar is one of the most exciting cricketers in the world ... and his career is now all but over, sadly.
In my view, cricket goes beyond politics and so-called wars on terror. I believe one of the reasons Pakistanis have gone along with George Bush - although half-heartedly - is so that they can still play cricket on the international stage, such is the passion for the natuional pastime. Who cares if the team is "islamicised" ... it's a muslim country.
All countries should play it, and as I've said before, it's a genuinely civilising influence. There'd be a lot less drama if they did.
Are you suggesting that ibrahim's daughter should be punished even though she is (in all probability) innocent and that Javed Miandad should have barred his son from love marrying Ibrahim's daughter to make the arch foe INDIA happy or to keep the diplomatic side of things as his 1st priority ?
Would that not be extremely prejudical and 'old world like' to punish two people in love who have not commited any crimes.
Also you conveniently forget to mention the mass murder of the indian muslims was the starting point of ibrahim's inhuman mass murder.
If you believe Ibramins doing's were the first draft then by that definition the 1993 mass murder of indian muslims were the 1st draft of the bosnian ethnic cleansing ?
So apparently its okay for hindu forces / cops / public and courts (the genocidal hindu fanatics were set free last I read) to have a high tolerance when it comes to the mass murder of muslims just not okay for a pakistani man to marry someone who's family is tainted (the extent of the taint should not matter as SHE is innocent)
Lets also not forget that hindu religious belief teaches and advocates the caste system which by its very design is to dehumanize a sector if hindu popultion. If the hindu majority has no problem dehumanizing their own people then muslims stand no chance of improving their lives under such a rulling class.
Your dislike towards Javed Maindad or his 'allowing' (it was a love marriage so either he disowns his son to make hindu's happy or go along with his sons wishes) is odd considering some of your comments seem fairly liberal (sex romp and drugs are 'harmless' - lets ask teen moms with a junkie boy friends), you suggest (from my understanding) its a sign of progress if people unduly punish innocent people for the crimes of their fathers etc.
The answer to why a nation would risk it all for the kashmir cause (and I personally don't care about kashmir) lies in the caste system, because of this caste system the achoots (sp?) i.e 'untouchables' set fire to themselves in protest and the hindu controling elite allows mass muders of muslims to transpire under the supervision of its cops/army etc. In such a case any nation should risk it all without fear of loss because to not do so will be cowardice.
How the world wishes that someone had stoodup to the Nazi's early enough, I suppose BJP/Shiv Sena would want Pakistan to wait untill all muslims are wiped from india or reduced to 'manageable' numbers ? although you sound more liberal than BJP /Shiv Sena yet you suggest that Pakistan should have sacrificed the kasmir cause to gain economic favor - or may be I misunderstood your point.
On a personal note I can't understand how the Pakistani crickets keep their concentration with the huge beard espcially under domestic (hot) conditions its mind boggling espcially because Islam does not make it essential to keep a beard and a majority of the country (even those who pray 5 times a day) don't have a beard.
The point I am trying to make is that the societal acceptance of a marriage of two innocent people does not equal to a high tolerrance of terrorist becasue if that is true then then since we all hail from Adam and Eve we all are guilty because somewhere along the line we are all related (if you believe the Adam/Eve stuff) and even if you don't subscribe to the Adam/Eve theory then also by modern world standards sins of the father should not must not cause exile / prejudice / humiliate / punish the innocent children.
Do you think Mahrukh deserves a have life of solitude because her father is a criminal / terrorist / mass murderer ?
Discussions are great to develop understanding and that is what I seek a different perspective which may be biased but with reasoning behind it. To shun someone innocent and yet boast about liberal values in the same blog/article are concepts / values in conflict are they not ?
M. Ramius
Hello Ramius,
You are right. Mr. Ibrahim's daughter can not be put into the line of fire since she happens to be his daughter. She can not be accused of her father's crimes. I wish her a happy life. But still it is a bit eerie: Like the Saudi king's son marrying Osama bin Laden's daughter....
Again Ramius, You are right about all that Muslim killings in India. You are also right about Hindu fundamentalists who are increasinly becoming more and more intolerant and violent. But this piece was about Pakistan. Besides, I wish people do not judge my pieces on Pakistan only with this consideration that I happen to be an Indian!
It's a popular misconception that Jemimah Goldsmith was Jewish. In fact, only her paternal grandfather was (and hence her surname). Her mother (Annabel Vane-Tempest-Stewart) is an English Anglican aristocrat, and her father's mother (Marcelle Mouiler) was a French Catholic. So, Qasim and Sulaiman actually have more Christian blood in them than Jewish.
For what it is worth, by Jewish law, this Jemima Goldsmith is not Jewish at all, but a Christian. Neither her mommy nor her mom's family was Jewish, and that is the key point here.
wow man u seem to know it all!
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One more sad example of an Indian's obsession with Pakistan.
God, you are boring.
J.Matthew